How It Happened: No. 12 Tennessee beats Arkansas 34-31

No. 12 Tennessee scored 24 unanswered points against Arkansas then had to hold on late Saturday at Neyland Stadium, beating the Razorbacks 34-31.

DeSean Bishop ran for 146 yards and a touchdown on 14 carries to lead Tennessee (6-1, 2-1 SEC) before leaving the game with what appeared to be a right leg injury in the second half.

Joey Aguilar completed 16 of 25 passes for 221 yards and a touchdown and ran five times for 59 yards an Braylon Staley caught six passes for 106 yards before leaving in the second half with an injury of his own.

Here’s how it happened, as it happened:

First Quarter

Arkansas 7, Tennessee 0 (10:10): Arkansas got the ball first and went 75 yards in nine plays with a 11-yard touchdown run from Taylen Green to take an early 7-0 lead. Tennessee started with a sack for a loss of three yards on first down, but the Razorbacks later converted a fourth-and-1 to keep the drive alive and scored five plays later.

Tennessee 7, Arkansas 7 (7:39): Tennessee didn’t waste any time answering, going 75 yards in seven plays to tie the game on a 17-yard DeSean Bishop touchdown run. Braylon Staley caught two passes for 32 yards on the opening drive.

Arkansas 10, Tennessee 7 (0:20): Arkansas went back ahead on a 28-yard field goal after an 11-play, 70-yard scoring drive. Colton Hood deflected a third-and-4 pass to force the field goal. The Vols on the previous possession got a strip sack and fumble recovery from Jordan Ross, but went three-and-out after two incomplete deep shots forced a punt.

Second Quarter

Tennessee 10, Arkansas 10 (10:40): Max Gilbert kicked a 37-yard field goal to end Tennessee’s third possession, tying the game after a 12-play, 57-yard drive. It stalled after two Star Thomas runs totaling one yard and an incompletion on a throw from Joey Aguilar to Chris Brazzell II in the front corner of the end zone.

Arkansas 17, Tennessee 10 (4:36): Tennessee again couldn’t get a stop after tying the game, with Arkansas going 75 yards in 11 plays to retake the lead on a 1-yard touchdown run. The Hogs converted third-and-9 and third-and-6 on the way to the score. 

Tennessee 17, Arkansas 17 (2:52): Back and forth they went. Tennessee got the ball back and went 75 yards in just five plays, with a 42-yard pass from Joey Aguilar to Braylon Staley doing most to fate work before Miles Kitselman caught an 8-yard touchdown pass. Staley’s catch put him over 100 yards for the game, with five catches for 105 yards.

Third Quarter

Tennessee 20, Arkansas 17 (11:50): Tennessee got the ball to start the second half and took its first lead of the day on a 50-yard Max Gilbert field goal. The Vols drove to the Arkansas 15-yard line before a personal foul penalty backed the drive up.

Tennessee 27, Arkansas 17 (2:11): Tennessee finally extended its lead with a 74-yard touchdown drive after forcing an Arkansas punt. Peyton Lewis ran 2 yards for the score to make it a 10-point game two plays after DeSean Bishop ran 26 yards to set the Vols up at the Arkansas 7. Bishop appeared to injure his right leg while being tackled on the 26-yard run, but he walked to the sideline under his own power with no limp.

Fourth Quarter

Tennessee 34, Arkansas 17 (13:15): Tennessee forced its fourth fumble of the day, Jadon Perlotte recovered and the Vols were in the end zone four plays later after a 19-yard drive to double up the Razorbacks after 17 unanswered points in the second half.

Tennessee 34, Arkansas 24 (8:17): Taylen Green threw a 9-yard touchdown to Rohan Jones to cap an 81-yard scoring drive to get it back to a 10-point game.

Tennessee 34, Arkansas 31 (2:55): After forcing a Tennessee punt, Arkansas went back down the field for another long scoring drive, this time going 80 yards on seven plays and scoring on third-and-10 from the 12-yard line.